Group 2

Question 1

Which block in the periodic table are the alkaline earth metals?

Answer 1

S block

Question 2

What happens to the atomic radius as you go down a group in the periodic table?

Answer 2

The atomic radius gets larger

Question 3

What happens to the first ionisation energy as you go down the group?

Answer 3

Decreases

Question 4

Why does the first ionisation energy decrease as you go down a group?

Answer 4

The extra inner shells shield the outer electrons from the attraction of the nucleus.
Outer electrons further away from the nucleus which greatly reduces the nucleus’s attraction.

Question 5

What happens to the melting point down a group?

Answer 5

generally decreases

Question 6

What is the reactivity of group 2 elements like?

Answer 6

When they react, they lose electrons, forming positive ions.
The easier it is to lose electrons, the more reactive the element so reactivity increases down the group

Question 7

Why does the melting point decrease down group 2?

Answer 7

Typically metallic structures so positive ions are surrounded by delocalised electrons - as you go down, the ions get bigger but the number of delocalised electrons doesn’t change.
The larger the ionic radius, the further away the delocalised electrons so less strong attraction

Question 8

Why is there a dip at magnesium in melting points?

Answer 8

The crystal structure changes